Elizabeth Isele

The Frog Princess is the classic fairytale story on with a Russian twist. The story involves three princes who set out on a quest to find thier bride to be. They all shoot their arrow in the sky and the first woman that picked it up is the one they shall marry. The youngest finds his in the mouth of a frog, and brings it to his father (Czar.) His father tells him it is fate and that he must marry the frog. What the Prince does not know that the frog is a princess. When the prince finds out the princess can form into a frog, he sets to find her frog suit and burns it, in hopes of her never having to return a frog. When doing so she has to flee as he has broken a curse and the prince must once more set out to find his princess.… (meer)

I had mixed feelings about this book. First, I liked the lesson of this novel. The prince in the story learns to be patient and not judge people by their physical looks/first impressions. I also enjoyed seeing the authentic Russian detail in the illustrations of this folktale. The clothes, food and haircuts were obviously appropriate for the time period. The illustrator even included smaller details, such as the style of architecture and the cuisine. Furthermore, I enjoyed the whimsical style of illustrations, especially during scenes involving magic.

However, I felt that the story's writing was generally disappointing. Although the artwork portrayed the Russian influences of the story, the author did not use any Russian words or refer to any cultural influences. The used very vague and non-descriptive language, especially towards the end. Without the illustrations, I would have have a hard time visualizing the story.… (meer)

I thought this book started out well, but it spiraled downward about halfway through. This is a retelling, and a very loose one at that (especially considering that the original is about a Frog Prince). As I said before, it started out fine, but then toward the end it got confusing. There were too many complicated names and I thought the entire 2nd half of the book was rushed through. I think it could have taken more time and could have been simplified a bit to make it a much more effective and intriguing story… (meer)